


On the Subject of "Mary Sue"

by magnaparva



Category: PIERCE Tamora - Works, Protector of the Small - Tamora Pierce, Tortall - Tamora Pierce
Genre: Advice, Characterisation issues, Gen, Mary Sue, Meta, but not quite meta
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-21
Updated: 2014-10-21
Packaged: 2018-02-22 01:41:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,352
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2489789
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/magnaparva/pseuds/magnaparva
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>How to avoid writing the annoyingly perfect self-insert that is known as a Mary-Sue character within the fandom community</p>
            </blockquote>





	On the Subject of "Mary Sue"

**Author's Note:**

> This is an open letter originally written in 2012 to a fellow fanfic writer. I thought I might post it up here for posterity's sake.

A few years ago, I started posting a How-To guide on my FF.N account. I was really ticked off at the world in general at the time when I uploaded the initial piece, and it... it showed, vividly, in the writing.

Still, somewhere along the way, I must have done something right because two other fanfiction authors decided that they would help out by chipping in with nuggets of advice of their own.

One of them wrote about how to spot a Mary Sue (the insanely perfect character that is just perfectly perfect at everything and has such a tragic past that you can't help loving it, oh my), while the other talked about how to write a decent story summary.

In July 2012, someone read the collection and sent me a message regarding a particular group of characters from Tamora Pierce's Tortall-verse books. These characters are Shang warriors, trained from early childhood; and her question was asking if they weren't all Mary Sues.

Well... I just had to respond, didn't I? I wrote back to her and this was what I said.

**_"In the Tamora Pierce books, aren't the Shang all Mary Sues?"_ **

No, actually, they're not. They're just regular folks from common families. They are picked at pretty young ages (three, four, seven?) to go and train with martial artists. It's the same with any kid that would be thrown into such an intense training routine that early in life.

Look at some of the most famous musicians, dancers and composers in the real world. Look at the linguists who know more than even, say, two languages - a lot of them start really young because that's when it's easier to learn. I know of plenty of children who aren't even ten yet, and they've already memorised the entire Quran (which, by the way, is very long!).

My point is, if you teach a child early enough and they're going to be good at it. They'll be far more malleable, far more impressionable, far more able to learn things that older people would struggle with even on a good day. It's why we shouldn't swear around kids, right?

That's why, in the Tamora Pierce universe, the Shang warriors are so well known and respected. They're known for their dedication, they're known for their hard work, they're known for their skill, they're known for coming from simple backgrounds. They didn't necessarily have things handed to them on a silver platter.

Think of their training, if you will, like those of the monks that we always see in action films. You know, the ones that live all the way up in a mountain somewhere in Far East Asia, that are always so knowing and wise and kickass. I'd imagine that those kind of teachers would probably result in not only a lot of humility, but plenty of self confidence.

The problem is, and here I go back to your initial question, that a lot of the Tamora Pierce fans first come across the Shang warriors in the Song of the Lioness quartet. This sets their impression of the Shang for the rest of the journey, and it's not quite fair. Alanna, the protagonist of that particular series, has a huge admiration for them all and doesn't get to meet any of them until the very last book of the series, Lioness Rampant.

And then we see that he's tall and gorgeous, and a stallion in the sack, and veritable fighting machine, and OH. MY. GOD. Most readers probably have stars in their eyes at this point. Not only is he a love interest for the heroine of the story, but he's also the Shang Dragon? The Dragon? The highest title any of the Shang warriors could ever attain?

Yeah, maybe this guy does look like a Mary Sue; after all, he seems pretty perfect, right?

But you have to then remember his imperfections, and here is where readers may gloss over the facts in order to leave their reading experience unblemished. He's scared of magic, and he breaks up with Alanna over her use of her Gift. He's unsupportive when it comes to Alanna wanting to express her femininity, saying that she either acts like a girly-girl all the time, or she stops it flat out.

There may be more, but I haven't read the series in a good few years now, so I can't quite remember. Anyway.

Moving on, we have the Shang Horse, and the Shang Wildcat. Far as I could tell, they really were just normal people with a skill for hand to hand combat. I loved those two characters for being so... regular. I know people in my day to day life just like them, if not for the physical part. Hakuin Seastone and Eda Bell.

The thing is, people tend to overlook these kind of characters exactly because of their normality. If they're not a love interest, if they're not particularly gorgeous, if they're lacking some sort of raw sex appeal, if they're not possessing some amazing gift, if they don't have a tragic history, if they don't have some kind of wonderful THING about them... they're just not worth remembering. Or at least, that's what I've noticed.

Everyone loves something exotic. Right? Perhaps that's why you've garnered the impression that all Tamora Pierce Shang warriors are Mary Sues. Bzzt. You couldn't be more wrong. It's the fanfiction writers that come out with the Mary Sues.

Most of us in this fandom are pretty young, still learning; most of us have little experience in fleshing out a character and actually making them seem like a convincing human being that people in the real world would voluntarily interact with. A lot of people like to project their own preferences onto their characters - if it's a love interest, then the person tends to show a lot of the qualities that the writer might be looking for in a partner for themselves; if it's not, then we see qualities that often the writer might wish they themselves possessed. Like beauty, strength, specific mutant powers, sex appeal, popularity, the ability to manipulate anyone and everyone.

If you want to avoid all that, here's my advice. Look at the people around you. Really look. We all have our strengths and weaknesses; it's what makes us human, it's what keeps us real. Try and project some of that onto your character. Don't go making them so perfect in one aspect without letting them down somewhere else.

Have you read Pride and Prejudice? If not, go do so as soon as you can. One of the characters, a Miss Jane Bennet, is described as beautiful and kind and wishes to see the best in everybody. That's great, right? Not always, actually, because we see in the novel that it causes her to be blind to the evils in other people, and it causes other people to distrust her because they can't tell if she's being genuine or not.

Don't go giving a character strikingly good looks just because you feel like it. If they have a magical power, perhaps make an issue of their abilities to control it; think of Thom of Trebond, or Duke Roger of Conte. If they're particularly skilled in one or more fields, think about their levels of pride; arrogance breeds really easily. Stick to the honest sort of names if you can, not going for silly things like Raven or Hunter just because you think it sounds cool; if you get stuck, go do some research on the similar time periods that your characters may be from. For example, someone may be called Jennifer in 21st century, but may have been called Guinevere had they been born in a medieval era.

Just... keep it real. Keep it honest. Keep it normal where possible. Keep it bearable. Remember that it's often hard to like someone who is the best of the best in every department. Don't just go for what you like, or what you'd wish for. Go for something that would convince everyone.

Best of luck. Keep writing.

\- magna_parva


End file.
